Episodes 1-3

Soccer (or football) is one of anime's most enduring topics. Ever since Akaichi no Eleven, which aired in 1970—and whose art style Clean Freak! Aoyama kun pays tribute to in its ED—stories of determined young soccer athletes have captured anime fans' imaginations. That means any new entry in the genre needs to uniquely stand out to survive. Aoyama kun, which deftly dribbles between situational comedy and play-by-play sports, certainly has that potential.

In its first three episodes, Clean Freak! Aoyama kun has already differentiated itself from contemporaries like Giant Killing and DAYS. Each episode consists of two loosely-connected halves, with one being the “soccer part” and the other the “sitcom part,” though the order in which they occur is negligible. On the comedy side, we're seeing a mix between the silly and shocking perfectionism of Haven't You Heard? I'm Sakamoto and the personality-driven comedy of Tanaka-kun Is Always Listless. As with Tanaka, main character Aoyama generates the bulk of the comedy through his personality quirk: extreme germophobia. As a coping mechanism, he's developed a uniquely skillful soccer strategy to avoid touching other players, and this makes him the single most valuable player on the Fujimi soccer team. The physical comedy generated by his style is where the Sakamoto comparison comes in.

But Aoyama can't carry the anime by himself. As we saw with Tsukushi in DAYS, one dynamic player isn't enough to make a show worth watching. However, Aoyama's colorful cast of teammates and admirers have already shown a lot of potential. Aoyama's protective and volatile childhood friend Moka, armed with a sticker-and-nail-emblazoned baseball bat, makes a dynamite team manager in more ways than one. Takechi, a rival team's captain who is forever attempting to recruit Aoyama while taking any opportunity to show off his six-pack, is a perfect storm of gag and sports show elements. This came to a head most recently when he reflected meaningfully on his middle school days playing soccer with Aoyama—while in the midst of an eating contest food coma. To top it off, he shares a voice actor (Takehito Koyasu) with Dio Brando for an added comedy element. Aoyama's goofball teammates haven't been deeply explored yet, but I have high hopes from reading their brief biographies in an earlier ANN article on the show.

On the soccer side of things, I'm relieved to see that the referee actually issues cards for foul play—something I've seen overlooked in some sports shows. I like my anime sports larger than life but with an element of believability, so even though Aoyama has some serious moves, and even though everyone transforms into chibi form at a moment's notice, it's nice to see that the show actually abides by the rules of the game. Game time is short to make room for all the comedy, but it still comes off as exciting enough to illustrate why Aoyama loves the sport even more than he loves seeing his reflection in a well-polished school desk.

As the show continues, I'll be hoping for more character exploration (everyone we've met so far has been worthy of a recurring role, and I hope this continues), and more juxtaposition of these two warring parts of Aoyama's personality. This is certainly an unusual entry in the soccer anime genre and, thanks to its comedy-sports combo, a memorable one too.

Wow! Hundreds of millions of dollars are flowing into the anime industry thanks to streaming! Is any of that money going to the people who actually make anime? Justin gets into it.― Custom Gundam asked: With ANN recently reporting that Crunchyroll royalties to the Japanese industry exceed US $100 million and also the huge amount recieved from global companies like Netflix and Amazon and also the va...

Take a journey back in time with Daryl Surat, when many people were introduced to anime through heartwarming films like My Neighbor Totoro and Grave of the Fireflies. But what forgotten gems lie sleeping in this long-ago year?― Every so often, I get questions regarding what the value is in observing what works of popular culture remain worth watching, decades after their creation. But nearly three m...

This beloved 2000s megahit is the newest to get a live-action update to the big screen, now available on Netflix after its theatrical run in Japan. Theron Martin finds out if this movie can live up to fans' expectations.― Fullmetal Alchemist was one of the most popular and successful anime/manga franchises of the 2000s, so the only surprise surrounding this live-action adaptation might be that it di...

Citrus has turned a few heads with its incestuous twist on lesbian romance. We suss out whether this makes for a juicy love story or just sour pulp.― Citrus has turned a few heads with its incestuous twist on lesbian romance. This week in anime, Michelle and Steve suss out whether this makes for a juicy love story or just sour pulp. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in...

Hiromu Arakawa's pastoral drama about the highs and lows of farm living at an agricultural college is a far cry from Fullmetal Alchemist, but just as rewarding. Rebecca Silverman has the details.― Hiromu Arakawa's agricultural coming of age tale's anime adaptation reached English-speakers long before now, which makes it feel like a real treat to finally get the chance to read the manga. Based roughl...

Paul discovers a hidden gem in a surprisingly lazy package with this lovely slice-of-life comedy. Plus, all this week's new anime releases and a brand-new Shelf Obsessed!― I've been working on putting together a Star Wars model kit recently, and holy heck that process is easier if you have a decent set of the appropriate tools. It's almost a relaxing experience when you don't have to threaten each ...

This attempt at a gritty action spectacle falls prey to confusing storytelling and baffling editing. Theron Martin examines what went wrong.― In the Summer 2016 Preview Guide, I gave the first episode of this manga adaptation a middling score, saying that it isn't without potential. Rarely have I looked back at a review and been more perplexed at what I wrote, as on a second view that first episode ...

There sure are a lot of gambling anime, but what's it actually like to gamble in Japan? Does anime paint an accurate picture? Justin gets into it.― Jake asked: I have recently been watching Kakegurui Compulsive Gambler on Netflix and it has me curious about gambling in Japan. Gambling is in a ton of anime from Samurai Champloo to Kaiji. Mostly I am familiar with the basic odd even dice game as well...

Mike digs into the legendary and idiosyncratic career of Ryousuke Takahashi, from Cyborg 009 to Armored Trooper Votoms to Phoenix.― A few weeks back, the Right Stuf folks were running some sort of cheap-o blowout sale, and one of the items for sale, along with a still-absurdly-large quantity of Geneon and ADV Films DVD backstock, was this hat. Yep, for just one dollar, you could be the proud owner o...

This adaptation makes great use of its difficult source material to tell a trapped-in-a-game/escape room story worth digging into. Rebecca Silverman explains why.― If you've played the original game of Ao Oni (“blue demon”) or watched the series of anime shorts, Kenji Kuroda's novelization may come as a surprise. That's not a bad thing, though – Kuroda's reimagining of the source material not only c...